Forever
by LovelyLadiiZ
Summary: Marisol is upset about her recent hair loss due to chemotherapy, and Horatio comforts her in his own way. His gesture, although simple, makes her love him all the more. Horatio/Marisol. One-shot.


Author's Note: I received this prompt as a request on my CSI Miami blog. The prompt was to write a Horatio/Marisol AU with one (or more) element of symbolism. It took forever to develop, but here we are at last. And just in time for Valentine's Day.

This takes place while Horatio and Marisol are dating. The only AU element is that Marisol has never stopped chemotherapy.

I hope you enjoy, and Happy (early) Valentine's Day. :)

* * *

**Forever**

* * *

Marisol Delko stared sadly at her reflection in the mirror that Saturday evening, running her French-manicured fingertips over her scalp. Her normally full black locks were now thin and brittle, or in some areas, completely gone.

It wasn't as if her hair loss was a surprise. She noticed an unusually large amount of shedding months ago. But she was hoping that she could hold onto at least some of her hair for a while longer.

She'd tried everything she could think of to keep it. She tried combing over her black locks to hide the thinner areas. She tried wearing hats and scarves to mask the fact that her hair was falling out. However, that very day when her hair started coming out in large clumps, she figured enough was enough.

_No use in prolonging the inevitable,_ she thought to herself.

Marisol felt soreness in her throat as she shaved what was left of her once beautiful long hair. Tears welled in her brown eyes and she turned away from the mirror. A sob escaped her lips. She didn't dare look up, didn't dare return her gaze to her now bald reflection.

_This day couldn't get any worse…_

The Delko woman slinked out of the bathroom, crawling into bed. She covered her face with her pillow, wanting desperately to disappear within the sheets. She wanted to leave this world and never return.

_I knew I should have stopped chemo. Now I can't leave home without a wig or a scarf._

Marisol sighed, whimpering as a new set of tears flooded her lids. Her life was becoming a series of unfortunate events. It all started when the doctor felt a lump at what was supposed to be her routine checkup. A mammogram confirmed the doctor's diagnosis—breast cancer. From there, it all went downhill. After an infinite amount of doctor visits, radical lumpectomy treatments, and a couple arrests for marijuana possession, here she was. Sobbing into a pillow… without any hair on her head.

_Why does this always happen to me?_

That unanswered question resounded in Marisol's mind. Why was life so unfair? It was almost as if someone of a higher power was toying with her.

_"You want to be happy? Well you have to earn that,"_ Marisol imagined this unknown higher power speaking to her. "_Oh and surprise: you have breast cancer!_

_"You like helping people, so why don't you help your support group? But don't forget, holding more than an ounce of marijuana with intent to redistribute will land you in jail. _

_"You love Horatio, don't you? Well he probably won't love you anymore, now that you're bald…"_

But maybe this all wasn't an act of an angry god. Maybe this was solely a result of Marisol's own bad decisions, periodically interrupted by twisted acts of fate. Maybe the old adage was true; bad things happen to good people.

_I just wish I could be happy… I just wish…_

Marisol's thoughts were rudely interrupted by a shrill ringing noise. Someone was at the door. She wasn't going to answer it at first, but as her visitor impatiently rang the doorbell once again, she reluctantly picked herself up out of bed.

"I'm coming!" she called, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. She tied a scarf around her head and sulked down the hallway.

As she opened the door, she saw Horatio standing on the other side holding a bouquet of cream colored tulips, smiling sweetly. His smile, however, faded a moment later when he apparently observed the look on Marisol's face.

"What's the matter, sweetheart?" Horatio asked.

"Nothing," Marisol lied immediately, forcing a watery smile into place. "Are these for me?"

Horatio's grin returned. "They are. I would have gotten roses… but I think these better express how I feel about you."

"Roses are so cliché. Besides, tulips are my favorite. Thank you, Horatio…"

Horatio stepped into Marisol's living room. "Are you almost ready?"

"Ready? …For what?"

The redhead's smile wavered. "We have a reservation at Casa Tua tonight… Did you forget?"

Marisol eased into an armchair, glaring at the cream tulips in Horatio's hands. "I don't think I can go out tonight, Horatio."

Horatio set the flowers on the coffee table and kneeled to gain eye contact with his girlfriend. He studied her for a moment before asking, "Are you not feeling well?"

Wordlessly, Marisol solemnly shook her head.

"Is it side effects of the chemo? Do you feel sick?"

Another silent shake of the head.

"Marisol, sweetheart, talk to me. What's bothering you?"

"I look hideous," Marisol murmured, her voice mousy.

"No, you don't," Horatio replied swiftly. "You're beautiful, Marisol."

"Horatio…" Marisol paused to loose her scarf from her head and reveal her hairless skull. Tears welled in her eyes once more. "I don't have any hair. You're telling me I'm beautiful like _this_?"

Horatio reached up to caress his girlfriend's cheek. "Mari, with or without hair, you are a vision of loveliness."

Marisol sniffled, placing her hand atop Horatio's. "You're so sweet."

"It's the truth, sweetheart."

The couple fell silent, gazing into each other's eyes. Brown into blue. In the midst of their silence, Marisol found herself revisiting her thoughts from earlier. Before, fate seemed to have a negative connotation. Funny thing, that fate. Sure, she'd been through hell, but if she hadn't gone through what she'd been through, she would have never met Horatio.

"Do you want to stay in tonight, sweetheart?" Horatio's deep voice broke Marisol's train of thought.

"…Yes. I'm sorry. I know you went through a lot of trouble to—"

Horatio placed a finger to Marisol's lips, silencing her in mid-sentence. "Marisol, I assure you… it's no problem. Why don't you find a movie for us to watch, and I'll order takeout?"

Horatio sparked an infectious charming grin, and despite her emotional turmoil, Marisol found herself smiling too.

"Okay," she replied.

* * *

A short while later, the couple sat on the couch watching The Notebook on pay per view while eating Chinese. Horatio periodically gazed over at his girlfriend, who forked over her food in silence.

"You've barely touched your chow mein," the redhead verbally observed.

"I'm not that hungry," Marisol said simply. "Chemo strikes again."

Horatio would've believed Marisol's words if he didn't catch her tug at her scarf on her head. She'd pulled at it continuously throughout the night. Though he assured her that she was still beautiful without her hair, she apparently didn't believe this as fact herself.

_I just wish she could see that she's beautiful no matter what_, Horatio thought silently.

"Can I ask you something?" Marisol's sweet voice broke Horatio's train of thought.

H nodded. "Of course, sweetheart. What is it?"

"How much do you love me?"

"Sweetheart…words can't describe how much I love you."

The redhead paused to touch his side pocket before rising from his seat.

_Well… here goes nothing…_

"Why?" Marisol asked.

Horatio stalled for a moment before sitting back down. "Why…what?"

"Why do you love me so much?"

"…Because you're everything I could ever ask for in a woman. You're kind, caring…and absolutely beautiful. I love you so much, sweetheart. And I'll love you forever."

Marisol glanced to the cream tulips in a vase on the coffee table.

"Sweetheart, are you still upset about losing your hair?"

Horatio saw tears welling in Marisol's brown eyes. She murmured an apology before retreating to her bedroom, locking the door behind her.

_So much for that plan. This night is not going well at all…_

* * *

"Mari, sweetheart, will you please open the door?" Horatio called for the umpteenth time.

Marisol heard her boyfriend, though she couldn't bring herself to answer him. Every time she opened her mouth to speak, a sob escaped. The very thought that Horatio planned a nice evening for them that she had ruined by wallowing in her self-pity only worsened her mood.

_I sure know how to ruin everything…_ Marisol thought to herself.

It was then that Marisol noticed the silence that fell upon the room. Horatio wasn't at the door anymore. Had he gone home?

_ I wouldn't blame him. I ruined his night. He probably hates me now._

Marisol crept toward the door and opened it. She ambled down the hallway, only to find that Horatio _hadn't_ left, but he was sitting outside on the back patio finishing his dinner instead. Inhaling deeply for courage, Mari opened the sliding door.

"You mind if I join you?" she asked, taking a seat beside him.

Horatio looked up to Marisol and smiled. "Not at all. Are you okay?"

"I… I think I'll be fine. It's just going to take me some time to get used to having no hair. Sorry for ruining your night."

Horatio tilted his head to the side. "Sweetheart… you didn't ruin my night."

"Yeah, I did. You had reservations…" Mari paused to gesture to Horatio's designer suit. "You dressed up and everything."

"Mari, I couldn't think of anywhere else I'd rather be than right here by your side."

Horatio clasped Marisol's hand in his, giving his ever famous charming smile. Marisol matched his grin with a much weaker one of her own. She inadvertently tugged the edge of her scarf down.

"I'll be back, sweetheart, I need to use the restroom," Horatio spoke again. "Why don't you open your fortune cookie?"

Marisol nodded as Horatio disappeared into the depths of her home. While she waited for him to return, Marisol opened her fortune cookie to read her fortune.

_"You will find endless fortunes in an unlikely place." if only the fortunes in fortune cookies came true…_

"It's beautiful out here tonight," Horatio's voice echoed throughout the patio.

Marisol nodded in agreement, admiring the full moon. "Yeah, it is."

Horatio took a seat alongside Marisol. The woman glanced over at him briefly before looking back again. She gasped, clasping a hand over her mouth at the sight. Her boyfriend's red locks were long gone, and she stared at his newly shaved head.

"You shaved your head…" Marisol managed to say.

The Caine man nodded. "I did."

"But why?"

"…Because I love you," Horatio said simply.

Marisol thrust her arms around Horatio's shoulders, pressing her lips against his. As she pulled away, she murmured, "I love you too. I love you so much."

Horatio smiled, wiping elated tears from Marisol's eyes. He caressed her cheek before he began speaking.

"I intended on doing this at the restaurant, but I think now's a better time…"

Marisol frowned. She was about to ask what he meant by that statement, but by then she saw Horatio kneeling in front of her on one knee, holding a ring before her.

"Marisol Delko, will you marry me?"

"Oh Horatio…" Marisol whispered breathlessly. More elated tears sprung to her eyes, and she answered his question without hesitation. "Yes. Yes of course…"

Horatio slipped the ring upon Marisol's finger before clasping her hands in his, swinging them back and forth.

"We're…uh, we're getting married," Horatio said with a giddy chuckle.

"We're getting married," Marisol parroted, laughing softly with her new fiancé. She gazed down at the ring on her finger—a moonstone gem surrounded by several small diamonds. "This is a beautiful ring."

"I was hoping you'd like it. It was my grandmother's, and I paid to have it modified with the diamonds. My grandma told me to give it to the love of my life."

Marisol grinned. "I love you, Horatio."

"I love you too, Marisol," Horatio replied. "And I'll love you forever."


End file.
